From Mike "aka I am a runner" Crawford!!!!! I think that article I sent
that said "there's no such thing as a great bike and a bad run" had quite an
impact on the team as a general rule. Mike gave up a few minutes on the
bike... which honestly could have been the phlegm in his throat from his
cold, but he made it up HUGE on the run. Total net gain, 10 minutes!
CONGRATS Mike... yes... you are a runner! (I loved your process goal on the
run, and how you acknowledge the mental demons that try their darndest to
get you to walk. You didn't give in, and the result speaks for itself.)
CONGRATS!
My goals going into this race were focus and form. I've noticed a lot
lately when my focus wanders, my form falls apart and my pace drops. In the
past I've always relied on distractions, on letting my mind wander to help
get through the work, just let my legs go. I've seen what that does for me,
so this was all about keeping my head together, and doing everything
possible to set up for a great run.
That's the theory, at least. The cold that Jacob had shared with Daddy
(he's very good at sharing) was starting to kick in by Saturday afternoon.
My throat was getting sore, voice coming and going. I wasn't sure how that
would affect the race. Tried to stay hydrated and fueled throughout the
day.
Slept horribly on race night, between Jacob's bouts of coughing and my trips
to the bathroom. The alarm went off way too early. My throat was sore
enough that my usual breakfast of toast wasn't going down. Tried some
oatmeal, wasn't much better. Got my gear together for the ride to the start
with Kelly and Mitch.
Getting my transition area set up I realized just how many things I had
forgotten - body glide, transition towel, sunscreen, and most importantly -
pre-race fuel. I had nothing to sip on for an hour and a half till race
start, as I didn't want to dip into my ride infinit. Between that and the
cold, I had a lot of doubts swimming around. Tried to push these thoughts
away by mingling with other TTL'ers.
The swim was mostly uneventful. Started in the middle, not far from the
front, but wasn't eager to dive into the crowd - I knew the first buoy would
be rough. I took an elbow to the nose on the first turn, but felt like the
current of all those bodies carried me through the corner. Around the
second corner a guy cut in front of me, so I decided to go up and over (if
that was you, sorry!). Swim time was 33:05, just seconds faster than last
year.
Coming out of the water I felt quite nauseous. I took my time in T1,
putting on arm warmers, and the rest of the gear. Started refueling as soon
as I got to the top of the hill, and quickly settled my stomach. I felt
good on the bike, but found that my Garmin wasn't set up as it should have
been, so I had to reset, which threw off my measure of distance/time. I
felt I was holding good speed, but my HR was way lower than usual - not sure
if that was the cold, the extra rest, or what. I pushed when I could, held
pace when I needed. I wasn't going to lay it all down and sabotage my run.
I was passed early on by Scott, and later on by Trevor and Alfred. My mind
wandered a few times, and bringing it back brought me back to pedalling full
circle, which brings up the speed, tried not to beat myself up about it all.
After the last turn on the highway I was ready to be done the bike - the
pavement was horrible, my body was getting sore, and had the headwind.
Instead of fighting it, I sat up and took it a bit easier - told myself to
get ready for the run. Bike time was 2:50, 3 minutes slower than last year,
although I didn't know that at the time.
T2 was quick, just a change of shoes and grab my hat. Got some cheers from
Richelle, then saw the family waiting for me. My throat was so sore I
croaked out something about cough medicine, but I don't think they heard.
My legs felt great, I had to keep backing off the pace. I had a goal pace
in mind, once I settled in I was about :10 slower but was content with that
- still much faster pace than I've run in a tri before. Ran for a bit with
Trevor, congratulated him on his great ride, then carried on. Saw Scott
again, Alfred, and Angie and Sarah battling it out. I knew from about 7k
that nutrition wasn't sitting well. I was walking the aid stations,
starting to take water and coke, but it wasn't easy. I just hoped that I'd
get enough in to not fall apart before the end.
John, Cindy, Ally and Caroline seemed to be everywhere on the course.
Smiling, cheering, it all helps so much. After the turnaround, I started
seeing all the other TTL'ers. Tried to cheer them on the best I could. By
15k my pace was dropping - I knew the lack of sufficient calories was
catching me, but I drew on my running successes this year to keep going. No
walking allowed aside from aid stations, was the goal. Letting myself off
was a bit of a demon of mine in the past - I wanted to put that to rest.
I was amazed at the strength I found for the last couple of k. Came round
the corner, saw the tent, heard the cheering and knew it was almost over.
Run time 1:54, 12 minutes faster than last year. Total time was 10 minutes
better as well.
Results: I accomplished most of my goals, the important ones anyway. I
controlled what I could (effort, nutrition, mind). I tried to let go of the
things I couldn't (my cold, the wind, forgetting a bunch of stuff). I
didn't let myself walk outside of an aid station. I expected my bike to be
faster, still need to figure out what happened there. But as hard as it was
at the end, I felt that I had the run that I had been hoping for.
Thanks to all the teammates and their families out supporting each other.
So much of my training is solo, it makes such a huge difference on race day.
And Angie: see? I'm a runner now too. I'm looking forward to IMC.
Mike
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